Blue Moon
by RAC
Summary: A couple of days before New Year's, Buffy is visited by Oz, who is having trouble controlling the beast inside. (Set after the end of the show)


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Blue Moon

Buffy sat in a chair by the window, staring out over the sea. She knew that she should be taking down her Christmas decorations, but things seemed so peaceful whenever she was sitting there, just watching the waves. She had really been enjoying her life since she had defeated the First, and couldn't imagine how things could have gotten any better. She had this beautiful villa in Italy, Dawn was attending school in Rome, and they hadn't encountered one supernatural creature in over a year. She thought about her last conversation with Giles, only minutes before. 

  
Xander had easily accepted his role as a tracker, finding Slayers all over the world and introducing them to the new Council. Faith had married Robin Wood and the two of them were living in Cleveland, protecting it from the Hellmouth upon which it had been built. Even Andrew seemed to be adjusting nicely to his new life as a Watcher. Things were going pretty well, for the most part. However, Willow was still not adjusting well to Kennedy's death, and had had joined a coven there in England, where she was being kept shielded from the outside world. Buffy wished that she could be there to help her old friend, but wasn't sure that there was anything that could be done.

She stood up and walked to the kitchen, looking for something to drink. There was a knock on the door. She looked at the clock. She couldn't imagine who would be showing up at her place this early in the morning. She knew that Dawn was planning to come for a visit later, but she should be attending a lecture right now. And, she knew that it couldn't be Giles, since she had just gotten off of the phone with him minutes earlier. Abandoning her search for a drink, she walked to the front door and threw it open.

"Hello," said Oz.

"Oz?" Buffy asked, not certain she could believe what she was seeing.

"Uh, yeah. It's me. Hi, Buffy," he told her. She looked him up and down, still not believing what she was seeing. His hair was still short, and blond again. The biggest surprise, though, was the way he was dressed. Despite all of the strange and unnatural things she had seen while living on the Hellmouth, nothing had prepared her for the image of Oz in a business suit.

"What brings you here?" she asked.

"Business, of all things," he said. Then, after she had let him inside, he removed his tie and loosened his collar. "Didn't they tell you?"

  
"Didn't who tell me what?" Buffy asked.

"I should have known," he said. Then, he sighed. "Buffy, I am working with the Watcher's Council. Giles sent me here to try to convince you to come back to England with me, and take a job as a… A teacher of sorts, for the new Slayers."

"And, why would I do that?" she demanded.

"Because you are the only one who can," Oz explained.

  
"Why me?" she wanted to know.

"Because… With Faith in Ohio, and Kennedy and the others dead, you are the only one who can. You are the only Slayer who has actually been an active demon hunter," Oz told her.

"What exactly happened to Kennedy and the others, anyway? I mean, Giles told me a little bit about it, but he was more concerned about Willow at the time, and I didn't want to press the issue," said Buffy.

"I wasn't there, so I can't say for certain, but from what Willow told me, it was quite horrible," began Oz. "They were somewhere in South America, and they came across a group of vampires that had formed some sort of alliance with a band of demons. They called in about ten Slayers, and were using Willow's magic to help them out as well."

"And, all of that wasn't enough," asked Buffy, not certain she believed what she had just heard.

"Oh, they got rid of all the vampires and demons, alright, but… The amount of magic she had to call upon in order to do it wiped out every living thing for almost half a mile, except for her. She still blames herself, despite what she is telling everyone else," explained Oz. Then, his gaze drifted away, and Buffy could see a tear at the corner of his eye. He turned back to face her. "Buffy, you didn't see her. There is no way she is okay with this. It's like… It's like _Willow_ isn't even there anymore. It is just her body."

"No," said Buffy. "She's okay. She has to be."

"Buffy," began Oz.

"No!" screamed Buffy as she stood up and left the room. A moment later, she returned, carrying a manila envelope. "She _is_ okay. She sent me this package the other day." She walked over and set the package on the table. Oz picked it up and opened it. He pulled out a crystal and a piece of paper. He set the crystal on the coffee table and opened the paper. It was a note from Willow, and he read it a couple of times before looking back up at Buffy.

"What does she mean when she says you'll need this soon?" asked Oz.

"I… I don't really know," said Buffy as she sat back down on the couch beside Oz. "That was the only part I couldn't figure out. Well, that, and the other part of the package."

  
"What other part?" asked Oz.

"I… I am not sure I should show you, given the circumstances. I… I think Willow has set us up," she told him.

  
"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I think there was a reason why you were sent here now, and why I was not made aware of your visit. Oz…" 

"What?"

"Do you still have the wolf under control?" she asked quickly, before she could change her mind. The look on his face made her immediately wish she hadn't asked, but then, when he looked away, she was certain that she was right. He turned back to her, and shook his head.

"No," he told her. "I haven't been able to control it since I spoke with Willow the last time. The wolf only gets out during a full moon, though."

"Which is tomorrow night," said Buffy.

"What? No," said Oz. "It can't be. We had one at the beginning of the month and…" He did some calculations in his head. "I can't believe I lost track of this. It's the blue moon."

"Blue moon?"

"When there is a second full moon in one month, it is referred to as a blue moon. Actually, it happens once a year," explained Oz. Then, he continued: "But, this year is special. It actually has two blue moons, and this is the second blue moon of the year."

"But, how is that even possible?" inquired Buffy.

"Because, we had one in January. The lunar cycle is only twenty-eight days long, and since all of the months are longer than that, except for February, we always have at least one blue moon within the year. But, when the first blue moon occurs on the twenty-ninth or thirtieth of January, then we get two, because that means the second will fall on the thirtieth or thirty-first of December."

"Oh," was all she could think of to say. 

"So, why did you need to know, anyway?" asked Oz

"I think Willow wanted me to wolf-sit you," Buffy told him.

"What?"

"Come with me, and I will show you," she said, as she stood up and walked to a nearby room. Oz followed her, and was surprised to see a cage. He looked from the cage to Buffy, and then back to the cage. Finally, he shrugged.

  
"I guess I am staying here tonight, then?" he asked.

"Looks like," she said. "And, I guess tomorrow night and New Year's Eve as well. That way, we will have easy access to the cage, without it causing any suspicion." Oz just nodded. Then, he looked out the window.

"It's starting to get dark," he observed. Buffy nodded, and then opened the cage. She wasn't happy about being forced into this situation, but she could understand why Willow had sent him to her. After Oz was in the cage, she shut the door, wrapped chains around some of the bars, and put a lock on the chain.

"I'll be in the other room, if you need anything," she told him. He just nodded at her, and she left. She went back to the couch, but decided that now, more than ever, she needed to feel calm. She decided to sit in her chair and watch what was left of the sunset. It seemed to pass really quickly, though. Before she knew it, the sun was completely gone. She stretched and stood up. That was when she noticed that the crystal on the table was glowing.

"What the…" she said as she approached the table. She bent down to pick up the crystal, when the glow became brighter, and then there was a flash of pink light. She heard a crash in the other room, and rushed to check on Oz. Surprisingly, Oz was still human, but he had grabbed some of the bars, and was bending them out of shape. Buffy gasped.

"Let me out of here!" he commanded her.

  
"I… I don't understand," Buffy said.

"It doesn't matter now! Just help me get out of here!" he snapped. 

"Of course," she said as she reached out and grabbed the lock. She gave it a quick twist, and as the bars bent inwards from the pressure, the chain snapped. Oz was now free! He shoved the cage open and grabbed Buffy, pulling her to the floor. When they had caught their breath, they began ripping each other's clothes off. They each felt a passion so powerful that nothing else mattered.

The next morning, they awakened to find themselves entangled in each other and their clothes. Yet, for some reason, it all seemed perfectly natural to them. Buffy smiled as she looked at Oz. Oz leaned in and kissed her. Buffy wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer to her. Oz made a growling sound in his throat, and Buffy squeezed him tighter, until he was gasping for air.

"Sorry," said Buffy as she let him go.

"It's okay," Oz told her. "Just let me catch my breath."

"Okay," responded Buffy. She waited a couple of seconds, and then said: "Are you ready to go again?"

"Definitely," said Oz as he leaned in and kissed her again. 

"Thank you, Willow," they sighed together as they rested after their morning exercises.


End file.
